Hide and Seek
by Clearly Odd
Summary: Erik can't find anyone, no one else can find Charles, and telepaths have an unfair advantage at hide and seek


The morning, thus far, had been unusually quiet. Normally the estate was full of noise by 10 AM, the sounds of teenagers arguing and training and simply _being_ filling the enormous house in a way only adolescents could. However, Erik had barely heard a peep from anyone since breakfast.

Normally, Erik wouldn't complain. In order to get some peace and quiet, he sometimes had to venture into the furthest reaches of the house, or out onto the expansive grounds. It should have been nice to have a still environment for once. However, Erik was, by necessity, a suspicious man. Any disturbance to normal routine that he had not been informed of was reason enough to locate the nearest inhabitant of the Westchester Estate and demand answers. Unfortunately, the students and their telepathic teacher were proving elusive prey.

Erik had so far searched the kitchen and dining room, each of the kids' rooms, Charles's room, the study, the bunker, the gym, and had made a circuit of the grounds, all to no avail. At last, Erik found himself in the television room and at a complete loss. Then, without warning, Sean appeared in the doorway with a triumphant shout. "Aha!" He pointed accusingly at Erik, "He's gotta be in here!"

"_Who_ has to be in here?" Erik asked, even as Sean was looking frantically about the room.

"The prof," Sean replied, barreling past Erik, heedless of the older man's irritation, "'Cause wherever you are, he's usually there, too."

Sean's answer served only to further irritate Erik. "I haven't seen Charles, or anyone, for that matter, all morning."

Sean paused. "Wait. Are you playing, too?" He asked, finally looking up at Erik.

"Am I- what? What are you talking about?" Erik demanded.

"Huh. Guess no one told you." Sean shrugged and continued his explanation before Erik could get another word in, "Professor X said he was going to hide somewhere in the mansion and whoever found him before noon could be excused from training for the rest of the day."

Erik quirked an eyebrow. "I see…"

Sean was saved further inquiry by Alex, who passed the room and lit up when he saw Erik standing by the couch. "Don't get your hopes up," Sean told him, "He didn't even know we were playing."

Alex's face soured slightly, but he shrugged and entered the room anyway. "You checked it over yet?"

Sean shook his head and, as if in silent agreement, he and Alex began a thorough search of the room, checking around every piece of furniture and even going so far as to pull the curtains back and look behind them. Finally, defeated, they left the room. Erik could hear them comparing notes on which parts of the house they had already checked, seeming to treat the exercise as a large game of Clue.

Shaking his head, Erik turned to sit down on the sofa, only to be startled out of doing so by a familiar voice. "Please don't."

Whipping around and looking down at the couch, Erik found one Charles Xavier sitting where he had not been just seconds ago and grinning like a loon. "Sorry for the deception, my friend, but the illusion is much easier to hold if I project it to everyone in the vicinity."

Erik blinked and, strangely, the first words that made their way out of his mouth were, "You're playing hide and seek with the children."

"I was thinking of it as more of a training exercise," Charles replied, his grin barely stifled now, "I'm teaching them to think outside of the box."

"I think making yourself invisible is cheating." Erik pointed out.

Charles gave up on any pretense of seriousness, his eyes sparkling with mirth. "They're all aware I'm capable of making it appear to people as though certain objects or people aren't there. They could be looking for indentations in cushions, but instead they're looking behind the drapes."

Erik felt a small smile of his own begin to work at his mouth. "This house is enormous, it's hardly a fair fight."

The telepath merely shrugged. "Can't blame me for wanting a quiet morning, can you?" He asked, brandishing the book that had previously escaped Erik's notice.

This time, Erik couldn't help but grin. "Not as long as you don't mind a companion."

"Not at all, provided you don't try to sit on me again." Charles stipulated, patting the patch of couch beside him invitingly.

As soon as Erik had settled himself on the sofa, Charles scooted into his side without hesitation, murmuring some rubbish about smaller targets being easier to hide that Erik didn't buy for a minute. Instead of arguing, though, he contented himself with wrapping an arm around Charles's back and reading over his shoulder, watching in amusement every time one of the children came in and searched the room over, each more frustrated than the last.


End file.
